The Heart Of Ice That Burned
by The Passionate Admiral
Summary: Inspired by an idea by ShaqlerIKMY. Princess Cadence and Shining Armor have hit a roadblock in their marriage. One of Shining Armor's fellow officers notices their dispute, and he tries to help settle the conflict. As time goes on, this officer becomes closer to Cadence. Much closer than any other Royal Guard would ever dare get to a Princess.
1. Chance Encounter

**The Heart Of Ice That Burned**

**Author: The Passionate Admiral**

**Rating: T**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the My Little Pony franchise. I do not own the character Comet Frost either. He belongs to ShaqlerIKMY. ShaqlerIKMY is also the one who came up with the idea for this story. He approached me and requested that I be the one to write it.**

**Plot: A year after "A Canterlot Wedding," Princess Cadence and Shining Armor have started having domestic problems. Despite being the Princess of Love, Cadence begins to wonder if she can continue sharing a bed with her husband. One of the Royal Guard – a stallion named Comet Frost – urges his Princess to do what she believes is right. As Cadence questions her feelings for her husband, she gradually develops a deep bond with Comet Frost, and she starts to see in him what she once saw in Shining Armor.**

First impressions are very important. Nobody can deny that. They form the basis of how one person views another person he or she has just met. This applies to any first meeting between any two individuals. In a casual environment, first impressions help people choose their friends. In an interview, the evaluator decides whether or not to hire the applicant based on their first impression. In the workplace, the boss gives all of his employees a certain level of responsibility according to how reliable he finds them, which in turn is determined by his first impression of them

The most delicate and sacred form of a first impression is the type that ultimately leads to a romantic relationship between the two parties involved. However, the majority of romances do not begin with either of the participants having an amorous view of the other. Unless it is love at first sight, they only regard each other as acquaintances at first. But it is always possible for their bond to grow into something stronger than friendship.

Nopony understood the value of the first impression more than a certain officer in Equestria's Royal Guard.

This officer was a stallion named Comet Frost. He had been in the Royal Guard for close to a decade. He loved his job, he loved the respect and prestige it brought him, and he had taken it because he loved his country.

When he first joined the Royal Guard, Comet Frost assumed he would spend most of his career patrolling the halls of Canterlot Castle. This was in fact what he did for the first nine years. However, less than a year ago, the Crystal Empire had remerged in northern Equestria after disappearing for a millennium.

Princess Cadence and her husband Shining Armor had been given control of the Empire. Once the city was secured from danger, fifty of the Royal Guard in Canterlot had been assigned to accompany the royal couple.

The number had gradually increased overtime. Just three months ago, Comet Frost had been transferred to the Crystal Empire's division. When he arrived there, he was promoted to the rank of Commander, which made him the Crystal Empire Royal Guard's third-in-command after Captain Shining Armor and his deputy, Commander Plainview.

Because of his status in their ranks, every member of the Royal Guard knew Comet Frost by name and by appearance. He was a Unicorn with an aqua coat, a white mane with a grey streak down the center, and his cutie mark was a snowflake. However, his eyes made up the most unique aspect of his appearance. His right iris was red, and his left iris was blue. Nopony knew why he had mismatched eyes; only he knew. It was a private matter he did not like discussing with others.

In the Crystal Empire, Comet Frost's duties extended to more than just a hallway sentinel. He was also tasked with performance reviews, recruiting the local crystal ponies into the force, and overseeing their training programs. Shining Armor had given him a considerable amount of authority to match his rank.

Comet Frost was very appreciative for all these new responsibilities. He had a great deal of admiration for his commanding officer. The two of them had served together on the Royal Guard for years, and they were more than just colleagues. They had become good friends as well.

However, while Comet Frost knew Shining Armor very well, he was nowhere near as familiar with his wife. In fact, he had never officially met Princess Cadence. He had occasionally passed by her in the hallways of both Canterlot Castle and the Crystal Empire Palace. Whenever he did, he always bowed to her, but they never spoke any words.

It had been three months since Comet Frost came to the Crystal Empire, and he still had not presented himself to Princess Cadence. Of course, Comet Frost knew that he would have to formally introduce himself to her at some point. After all, the whole reason the Royal Guard were even in the Crystal Empire was to protect her.

Comet Frost did not get nervous when he met people. One of his best qualities was that he always knew how to make an excellent first impression. The primary reason he had delayed introducing himself to Princess Cadence was that he was looking for the most ideal opportunity to do so.

Three months after Comet Frost arrived in the Crystal Empire, he was given that opportunity. On this day, he woke up like he did every other morning. He ate breakfast and made himself presentable like he did every other morning. He checked in at his office and examined the roster like he did every other morning.

On any other morning, he would have drawn up a set of training exercises for the new recruits after examining the roster. However, before he could do this, he was summoned to the barracks by Shining Armor. Comet Frost was intrigued when he got this message. The only reason Shining Armor would summon him to the barracks without any prior notice was if there was a sudden need to increase the level of security in the palace.

When Comet Frost arrived at the barracks, three other ponies were already there. Two of them were Shining Armor and Commander Plainview. The third was an orange Pegasus with a blue mane, light blue irises, and a blue shield with a yellow lightning bolt for a cutie mark. He was Flash Sentry, the fourth-in-command of the Crystal Empire Royal Guard.

Once Comet Frost was settled, Shining Armor debriefed him and the other two stallions on the situation. He informed them that he had received an important message from Canterlot. According to the message, the Crystal Empire had been tasked with holding a summit for the newly-crowned Princess Twilight Sparkle. The summit would start in the late evening, and it would last about a week.

Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would both be attending the summit. They would be arriving well before noon. However, Princess Twilight was not expected to arrive until sometime after Luna had risen the Moon. Shining Armor explained that the summit had been arranged this way so that the Royal Guard at the Crystal Empire would have time to reinforce their numbers and tighten their safety measures. That way, by the time the other three Princesses showed up, the palace would be totally secure.

After the debriefing, Shining Armor distributed the assignments. Commander Plainview was tasked with selecting which units would patrol the exterior of the palace. Comet Frost would pick which units would monitor the corridors and entrance hall. Flash Sentry would organize which units would observe the throne room.

This was the majority of what Shining Armor expected his senior officers to do that day. He also expected each of them to play a minor role in the opening of the summit itself. Plainview was asked to escort Princess Twilight and her friends to the throne room once they reached the palace. Flash Sentry was asked to introduce Twilight Sparkle when she appeared in the throne room. Comet Frost was asked to introduce Cadence, Luna, and Celestia in turn.

Comet Frost saw this as the perfect chance for him to make a good first impression of himself in front of Cadence.

After the meeting, the four stallions got busy. A couple hours before noon, an entire legion of the Canterlot Royal Guard came to the city. These were their reinforcements. It only took Plainview, Comet Frost, and Flash Sentry a few hours to assign all these units to their posts. In the end, the palace had a very strategic and formidable security network formed by hundreds of the Royal Guard.

Comet Frost was off-duty for a couple hours before the summit. He spent that time contemplating what he would say when he introduced the princesses. He stood alone on the balcony outside the throne room, practicing his introductions.

"Okay, how do I put this?" he muttered under his breath, "'Their Highnesses, Princess Celestia of the Day, Princess Luna of the Night, and Princess Cadence of…' of what? The Crystal Empire would certainly work, but that seems too vague. And somewhat insignificant when compared to day and night. Perhaps I could say 'Princess of Love.' No, that might be too suggestive. Maybe I shouldn't refer to them as 'Their Highnesses' either. I can afford to say 'Her Highness' three times; I'm not any time constraints. Hmmm… what if I introduced Princess Celestia as the 'Princess of the Sun,' Princess Luna as the 'Princess of the Moon,' and then Princess Cadence as the 'Princess of the Crystal Empire.' At least that way, I'd be saying that they each represent a physical object. Still, it seems a little inadequate. The Canterlot Royalty already rules all of Equestria, and the Crystal Empire is technically part of Equestria. That being said, all three of them would have some amount of jurisdiction here. I can't make it sound like Equestria is a divided kingdom."

He went on like this in solitude for a long while before he had some company. At one point, he heard a voice behind him call out "Good evening, Comet."

The aqua stallion quickly spun around to face his visitor. He eased down when he realized who it was. He smirked and replied with "Oh, hello, Flash."

The orange stallion nodded his head in acknowledgment and trotted onto the platform. He asked his friend in interest "What are you doing out here?"

"I'm trying to decide how to introduce the princesses at the summit," Comet Frost explicated, "I've literally considered dozens of possibilities, but none of them seem suitable."

Flash Sentry scoffed and stated "I never would have thought you of all ponies would be so distraught over such a small detail."

"Flash, in this line of work, no detailis small," Comet Frost countered.

"Alright, that may be," Flash openly admitted, "Still, I think you're needlessly stressing yourself out. I'm just going to say 'Her Highness, Princess Twilight Sparkle.'"

"That's it?" Comet Frost remarked in surprise, "No addendums or anything?"

"Nope, just that," Flash Sentry confirmed, "Even if I wanted to add something, I wouldn't know what else to say."

"Off the top of my head, I can think of a few things," Comet Frosts informed him, "You could say 'Princess of Ponyville.' Or 'Princess of Magic.' Or 'Princess of the Elements of Harmony.'"

"What about 'Princess of Books?'" Flash Sentry joked.

"Books?" Comet Frost repeated.

"Captain Shining Armor once mentioned how much Princess Twilight Sparkle loves to read," Flash Sentry illuminated, "So 'Princess of Books' could be an appropriate label. Who knows? If I say that, she might even be amused."

"It's possible that she has a sense of humor, but I wouldn't risk finding out the hard way if Captain Shining Armor doesn't," Comet Frost observed, "After all, this is his sister we're talking about. You realize that, don't you?"

"Of course I realize that," Flash Sentry retorted, smugly grinning, "How dense do you think I am?"

"Do you really want me to answer that question?" Comet Frost leered wittily.

Flash Sentry lightly shrugged and said indifferently "Sure, go ahead. In your mind, how dumb am I?"

"You know I don't regard you as dumb, Flash," Comet Frost stated, "I'm just trying to make sure you understand how important it is that we say the right thing at the summit."

"I understand, Comet," Flash Sentry assured his friend, "Believe me, I'm taking my responsibilities very seriously. And anyway, if one of us should be concerned about the introductions at the summit, it would have to be you."

"Oh?" Comet Frost remarked, raising an eyebrow "Why is that?"

"Captain Shining Armor can be a forgiving stallion," Flash Sentry remarked, "But I put emphasis on 'can be.' It would depend on what misdeed he'd be asked to forgive. If somepony screws up introducing his sister, he'd probably be willing to pardon them. If somepony screwed up introducing his wife… I'd hate to be in that pony's horseshoes."

Comet Frost narrowed his eyes at the younger stallion and frowned, as if he was profusely annoyed. Then he sarcastically uttered "Thanks for bringing that to my attention, Flash."

"I'm not saying that would actually happen," Flash Sentry told him, "I was just speculating. Like I said before, you and I don't have anything to worry about. If you want my advice, look over these 'dozens' of introductions you've made and pick one. You'll do fine."

Comet Frost could not deny the reasoning in his colleague's words. He sighed and remarked "Okay, Flash. I'll do that. You go ahead and double-check the security in the throne room. I need a little more time to think."

Flash Sentry agreed to this proposal and departed from the balcony. Comet Frost was left by himself once more. He spent about ten minutes going over all the possible introductions he had rejected, and finally, he selected one which he deemed adequate.

An hour later, he returned to the throne room. Flash Sentry and a dozen of the Royal Guard were already assembled there. Interestingly, all twelve of these Royal Guard were crystal ponies. Other than Flash, Comet was the only person in the whole room whose coat was not glittering.

That quickly changed. Less than twenty minutes later, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Cadence arrived in the throne room. The fourteen stallions bowed to them as they passed through the large double doors and proceeded to the opposite end of the room. Cadence sat down in the throne, and Celestia and Luna stood on either side of her. Once they were settled, the Royal Guard stood up straight again.

Fifteen minutes later, the double doors opened again and Commander Plainview held them open. The twelve crystal Royal Guard each raised a trumpet to his mouth and blew strongly. As they produced the customary royal fanfare, A lavender Alicorn passed through the double doors and walked down the columns.

She gazed around the room as if she was astonished. Unfortunately, because of this distraction, she was unable to walk in a straight line. She veered slightly to the right as she proceeded down the room. When she reached the end of the column, she bumped into Flash Sentry by mistake.

Both the lavender Alicorn and Flash Sentry were surprised by this, but the orange stallion wordlessly assured her that everything was alright. As the mare backed away, he closed his eyes and announced "Her Highness, Princess Twilight Sparkle!"

Comet Frost smiled in satisfaction. Then he pointed towards the other end of the room and declared "Her Highness, Princess Celestia of Canterlot; Her Highness, Princess Luna of Canterlot; and Her Highness, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Empire!"

Cadence stepped down off the throne and approached the younger Alicorn. She chuckled, nuzzled her head against Twilight Sparkle's, and told her happily "Twilight! I haven't seen you since the coronation."

Princess Luna and Princess Celestia moved to Cadence's sides. Twilight Sparkle was not alone either. An orange Earth Pony, a pink Earth Pony, a white Unicorn, a yellow Pegasus, a cyan Pegasus, and a purple and green baby dragon gradually advanced towards her. The white Alicorn pronounced "He have so much to discuss. But it can wait until tomorrow. You all look tired from your journey. Now off to bed, all of you."

Twilight Sparkle, the dragon, and the other five mares acknowledged Celestia's command. All seven of them turned around and headed back to the double doors. On the way, they talked amongst themselves excitedly.

Once they were gone, Celestia, Luna, and Cadence departed from the throne room as well. On her way out, Cadence looked at Comet Frost out of the corner of her eye and smiled at him. He just nodded in return.

After the princesses left, the twelve crystal Royal Guard filed out of the room one-by-one. Subsequently, Comet Frost and Flash Sentry were left by themselves.

Flash Sentry scoffed and perceived "That was perhaps the briefest initiation to a summit that I've ever seen in my life."

"Well, to be fair, it is quite late," Comet Frost pointed out, "Besides, this summit is supposed to last an entire week. There's no harm in having a brief opening."

"I guess that's true," Flash coincided. After a moment of silence, he grinned and stated "Couldn't help but notice you got Princess Cadence's look of approval."

"Yes, but it still wasn't a formal introduction," Comet Frost debated, "And it certainly wasn't 'close and personal,' like your encounter with Princess Twilight."

Flash Sentry scoffed and professed, "Yeah, that's true. I'm a little surprised that happened. You'd think she'd be as concerned about her presentation as we were about ours."

"Apparently not," Comet Frost commented, "Then again, this was her first summit. You can't blame her for being astonished by the profundity of it all. Having all this… attention. She may find it a little overwhelming."

"A fair observation," Flash admitted. There was another short interval of quietness. Then the orange stallion suggested "We should probably turn in for the night, too. We'll need our rest in order to maintain this much security for an entire week."

"I concur," was all Comet Frost said in response.

The two high-ranking officers left the throne room and made their way to their quarters. Comet Frost thought about how the introductions went. He was quite pleased that he had not stuttered or misspoken in any way. However, he still had yet to properly introduce himself to Princess Cadence. To some, that might not have seemed like a big deal, but it was a matter of principle to Comet Frost. He felt that Cadence had a right to know who exactly had been appointed to protect her, and he doubted that she even knew his name. To him, that was inexcusable.

He vowed that he would remedy this problem the next morning. If everything went on schedule, he would have done so indeed. Unfortunately, an unforeseen complication occurred before the Sun was raised.

Comet Frost was awoken in the middle of the night by a loud thumping sound. After collecting himself, he realized somepony was knocking on the door to his quarters. He called out hastily "Enter!"

Immediately, Commander Plainview entered and shouted in urgency "Comet, get in uniform and report to the throne room right now! We have a security breach!"

Plainview left immediately after saying this. Without stopping to think, the aqua stallion jumped out of bed and donned a full set of armor. Then he galloped as fast as he could to the throne room. Shining Armor and Plainview had already arrived there ahead of him.

"Alright, what's the situation?" he enquired anxiously.

"An intruder was in the palace," Shining Armor apprised him.

"'Was?'" Comet Frost noted, "Where is he now?"

"**She** got away," Plainview enlightened him, "But we know where she is."

"Okay, how did she get out of the building?" queried Comet Frost.

"The same way she got in," Shining Armor replied, "Strictly speaking, she never entered or exited the palace. She just appeared through a type of portal in the east wing. Princess Twilight and her friends were the only ones who saw her. They described her as a yellow Unicorn with a red and yellow mane, mint green eyes, and a shimmering sun for a cutie mark. She escaped through the aforementioned portal before they could stop her."

"What was she doing here?" Comet Frost queried.

"She was trying to steal Princess Twilight's crown," Plainview informed him, "Unfortunately, she succeeded."

"Then we must got after the intruder and apprehend her as soon as possible," Comet Frost declared.

"Negative, Comet," Shining Armor countered "Princess Celestia has already been informed, and she's forbidden anypony from going after that intruder without her consent."

"Did she give any particular reason why?" Comet Frost requested.

"No, but as you and I both know, that's not the point, Comet," Plainview retorted, "When Celestia gives an order, it is our job to follow it."

"I'm not disputing that, sir," Comet Frost assured his superior officer, "I'm just saying; we cannot risk letting that thief get away. The longer we delay, the better her chances of escape may be."

"Princess Celestia has informed us that she has a plan to recover the crown," Shining Armor notified the aqua stallion, "However, she has requested that we let her handle it in her own way. She does not want the Royal Guard involved."

To Comet Frost, this was a most unusual request. However, he had an obligation to honor Celestia's wishes. So he did not question her orders.

"Very well," he agreed.

Later on, Comet Frost discovered that the intruder was a mare named Sunset Shimmer, Celestia's previous failed apprentice. She had been residing in an alternate world for years, but she had found a way to accumulate information on the events of Equestria and return to steal Twilight Sparkle's crown. Her motivations for taking the crown were unknown, but the princesses were very clear when they said it was imperative that the crown be recovered.

Twilight Sparkle was tasked with following Sunset Shimmer into the alternate world. She would be getting there the same way as Sunset: by passing through the portal in the east wing. This portal was actually a mirror which doubled as a gateway once every two and a-half years. Whenever the gateway opened, it only stayed open for seventy-two hours at a time. That was how long Twilight had to retrieve her crown.

Twilight Sparkle was expected to go to the alternate world by herself without any backup. Although she was hesitant to do this, she reluctantly agreed. However, her dragon assistant Spike had rushed in after her before anypony could stop him.

There was nothing anypony else could do now except wait.

Twilight Sparkle's friends Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash all agreed that they would not leave the room with the portal until their friend had safely returned to them. Out of concern for both Princess Twilight and her friends, Celestia, Luna, and Cadence had decided to remain with them in that room for as long as they were there.

Since all three of the princesses were staying in one room, the Royal Guard saw it necessary to post a hefty security force outside the chamber. Shining Armor and Plainview were too preoccupied with overviewing the security measures in the rest of the palace, so the duty for organizing the princesses' detail fell on Comet Frost's shoulders.

Near the end of the first night, Comet Frost entered the room. None of the eight mares were focused on the mirror, but every now and then, they each glanced towards it, as if they were hoping Twilight Sparkle and Spike would come out.

Comet Frost politely cleared his throat and announced "Pardon me, ladies, Your Highnesses."

At this, all eight mares turned towards the aqua stallion. Once he had their attention, he stated "I understand that you have no intention of leaving this room until Princess Twilight has returned. However, she may be gone for a while. So I was wondering… Is there anything I can get you? Some food? Some water? Maybe something to help pass the time?"

Although their primary concern was still for Twilight Sparkle's well-being, the mares had not eaten all day. So they gladly accepted Comet Frost's offer. He asked each of them what they would like for dinner, and he sent their orders down to the kitchen.

Comet Frost decided to wait with them until their food arrived. None of the mares objected, much to his relief.

They spent several minutes in silence. However, there was something on Comet Frost's mind. Something that had been bothering him all day long. He felt the need to get it off his chest, and he believed the best way to get it off his chest would be to discuss it with somepony.

At one point, Comet Frost gazed towards the mares and requested "May I speak freely?"

"Certainly, Commander," Princess Celestia replied.

Comet Frost knew what he wanted to say, but just like the introduction at the summit, he was concerned that it would come out wrong. So he chose his words carefully. He disclosed to the mares "I cannot begin to tell you how sorry I am that this fiasco had to occur. I cannot help but feel that this is somehow my fault."

"What do you mean, Commander Frost?" Princess Luna queried in perplexity.

"Captain Armor tasked me with strengthening security inside the palace," Comet Frost expounded, "I posted plenty of units throughout most of the foundation. Yet I didn't think to post a sentinel outside of this room. If I had… maybe we would have arrested Sunset Shimmer before she stole the crown. But that's not the case. So I just want to say that I take full responsibility for this disaster, and for whatever happens to Princess Twilight Sparkle and her assistant."

The mares were astounded by Comet's expressiveness and rectitude. Cadence stepped up to the aqua stallion, gently placed her front hoof on his shoulder, and told him "Commander, there is no way you could have forecasted this. You mustn't blame yourself. I certainly don't. If anything, I blame myself for not watching over this mirror more carefully."

"That is very thoughtful of you to say, Your Highness," Comet Frost remarked gratefully, "But there is no need for you to place the blame on yourself. I'm willing to accept it."

Cadence lightly smiled and said softly "I admire your readiness to accept consequences, Commander, but you are not at fault here. In the long run, the only person at fault here is Sunset Shimmer. She was behind this offense. Not you or anypony else."

Comet Frost felt he would be a fool to continue arguing this point. After all, there was some irrefutable logic in Cadence's speech. Aside from that, he knew better than to directly contradict a princess. So he decided to let the matter go. At the very least, he no longer felt as guilty as he did before this discussion began.

After the mares ate, they spent a few more hours grouped around the mirror. By then, Comet Frost could tell that they were tired. So he had eight portable beds rolled into the room. That way, the mares were able to get their rest without leaving the room.

This was the bulk of Comet Frost's schedule for the following two days. He made attending to the princesses and the five mares from Ponyville his first and only directive. Some might have referred to it as uneventful or tedious, or even somewhat boring. He did not think so. He was just glad he was able to contribute to the mares' well-being.

He was rather surprised that Shining Armor never stopped by. Especially considering the fact that it was his sister in the portal, and his wife was one of the eight mares waiting on her. He just assumed the Captain had his own reasons for not showing.

On the night of the third day, Twilight Sparkle returned with Spike and her crown. She appeared to be tired, but she had succeeded. Not a moment too soon; the portal sealed itself up just as she got back to Equestria. Her friends and the other princesses happily welcomed her home.

Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Spike, and Cadence all followed Twilight back to her room. On the way, she accidentally ran into Flash Sentry again.

The orange stallion just smiled, helped her up, and stated casually "We've got to stop bumping into each other like this."

Twilight just blushed a deep red when he said this. Once she was on her feet, Flash Sentry sauntered away from the scene without another word.

Comet Frost had seen the whole thing. When Flash Sentry reached him, he remarked cheekily "Smooth move, Flash."

The Pegasus turned to the Unicorn and asked in perplexity "What do you mean, Comet?"

"You've only encountered the Boss's sister twice, and now she seems borderline smitten with you," Comet Frost clarified.

"I wouldn't say she's **that **interested," Flash Sentry refuted, "Give me some credit. At least it wasn't the Boss's wife. That's more than I can say about a certain superior officer of mine."

This time it was Comet Frost's turn to be confused. He raised an eyebrow and enquired "What in Tartarus are you talking about?"

Before the younger stallion had a chance to respond, they were approached by Princess Cadence. The pink Alicorn stepped up to the aqua stallion and said "Excuse me, Commander Frost."

"Yes, Your Highness?" he acknowledged.

She smiled at him and declared "I just wanted to tell you how appreciative I am for everything you did these past three days. Thank you for keeping us company, and for looking out for us. You are a very praiseworthy and honorable stallion."

Comet Frost did not know what to say to this. But he did not need words to prove that he understood. Cadence bid him and Flash Sentry good night and went to find her husband.

Once she was gone, Flash Sentry remarked "You see what I mean? You were with Princess Twilight's friends and the other princesses for almost all of the last three days. You stood by them when nopony else would. They'll remember that. Especially Princess Cadence."

Comet Frost could not deny it; Flash Sentry was correct. It was then that he realized he had finally succeeded in presenting himself to Princess Cadence. He had left her with a positive first impression of him. The most remarkable and fascinating part was that at the time, he had not even been concerned about making a good first impression.


	2. Professional Opinion

**Note: I apologize for taking so long to update this. I've just been preoccupied with other matters, primarily my other MLP fanfic "Fortune Favors The Bold." I'll try not to make you wait as long for the next chapter for this story. Hope you enjoy it.**

After the incident with Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle's summit did not witness any more setbacks. All the same, the Royal Guard made certain to keep tight security in the palace throughout the rest of the week. As an extra precaution, Comet Frost posted two of their most vigilant units outside the room with the mirror.

While very little had been accomplished in the summit's first three days, the achievements of the last four days made up for that lost time. The four princesses spent much of that time discussing politics, economics, and social order in the meeting chambers. They gave several speeches to the public; some of them individually, some of them as a group. They arranged an outline for some of the events of the upcoming Equestria Games.

Shining Armor handled overseeing the princesses' protection. He assigned Plainview, Comet Frost, and Flash Sentry to continue monitoring the security of the palace. The three officers were kept very busy with this task, and although it may have seemed somewhat monotonous, they managed to have a little excitement.

The last event of the summit was a type of social gathering. That evening, the palace doors were opened to the public, and the residents of the Crystal Empire were invited to come inside the magnificent building. Nearly everypony in town accepted this invitation, believing that they would be in for a wonderful night.

Sure enough, they were. The gathering was regarded as the Crystal Empire's equivalent of the Grand Galloping Gala. Twilight Sparkle's friends Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie organized the whole thing. They treated the guests to a night of excellent refreshments, elegant fashion, exquisite sightseeing, enthralling competitions, and exciting merriment.

However, not everypony who attended the celebration was entirely pleased. The officers of the Royal Guard just viewed the gathering as an addition to their work schedule. With the vastly increased population and level of activity, the Royal Guard were given a difficult directive. They had to maintain the palace's security without getting in the way of the festivities.

Comet Frost was posted as the entrance hall. He greeted everypony who entered the foundation and redirected them to wherever they wished to go. It may have seemed like an uneventful duty, but he did not protest. He actually met numerous interesting characters that evening.

At one point, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor stopped by. Initially, he assumed that they were there because they were expecting somepony important to arrive soon. As it turned out, they were there to see somepony, but this pony had already arrived. They had come to speak to Comet Frost himself.

The aqua stallion was perplexed as to why his Captain and his Captain's wife would want to see him. He quickly discovered that they were there to commend him for all he had done in the past week. Shining Armor was particularly appreciative of how Comet Frost had looked after his wife, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight's five friends for the first three days.

Comet Frost was a fairly modest stallion, but he made it clear that he was grateful for the recognition Shining Armor and Cadence gave him. To him, it was an honor to be commended by both of them. Not only because that was a surefire sign that he was doing his job right, but also because he now had assurances that both his boss and his employer approved of him.

By the time the Sun was in the sky the following morning, all the guests had left the palace. After cleaning the place up, Princess Twilight and her friends went back to Ponyville, and Princess Luna and Princess Celestia went back to Canterlot. Now the only members of the Equestrian Royalty left were Cadence and Shining Armor.

The additional safety measures were quickly disbanded, and the palace was returned to its usual level of security. Everyday life was pretty much the same as before the summit. The only major difference was that Comet Frost's self-confidence in his ability and his image was now significantly greater than before.

In the weeks that followed, nothing out of the ordinary occurred in the Crystal Empire. The empire's popularity as a vacation spot and a habitation gradually increased. It saw a constant rise in tourism and emigration. The town started expanding in size. More and more ponies came to admire the city for its beauty and hospitality.

Comet Frost continued to carry out his duties as the third-in-command of the Crystal Empire's Royal Guard. He scheduled combat drills. He drafted training programs. He reviewed personnel files. He broke in the new recruits. He also spent a significant percentage of his leisure time with his fellow officers.

At the time of Twilight's summit, he had been in the Crystal Empire for three months. By the time that extended to four months, Comet Frost had gained the respect of most of his colleagues. He had also gained the attention of the very person he was there to protect.

Comet Frost could tell that Princess Cadence was a little fond of him. Every time they encountered each other, he greeted her, and she greeted him in return. She always seemed genuinely pleased to see him whenever she bade him good day.

Comet Frost was not the only recipient of Cadence's warmth.

Somehow, Comet Frost came across Princess Cadence much more often than he did before the summit. More often than not, it was just pure coincidence that they were in the same place at the same time. Whenever he encountered her, Cadence was typically speaking with a member of her council or one of her consultants. Sometimes the other person was expressing serious concern or anxiety over a certain issue. Cadence never reciprocated these feelings of worry. She remained patient, assured them that the situation could be resolved, and offered a suitable solution to it.

The aqua stallion could see why Cadence was regarded as the Princess of love. She treated everypony she knew with tremendous affection and care. He had to admire the pink Alicorn for her compassionate persona.

A few days before the Summer Sun Celebration, Comet Frost was summoned to the meeting chambers. When he arrived there, he found that Shining Armor and Cadence were waiting on him.

"Good day, Commander," Cadence welcomed him.

"Hello, Your Highness," he said in response. As he approached the table, he turned to his commanding officer and saluted him, saying "Hello, Captain."

Shining Armor nodded in acknowledgment and stated "At ease, Comet. Take a seat."

Comet Frost lowered his front hoof and sat down at the table. Once the white Unicorn and the pink Alicorn took their seats, he remarked "So, how may my services be of use?"

"As you know, the Summer Sun Celebration will be in less than a week," Shining Armor began, "We were informed just this morning that the official ceremony will be in Canterlot this year. Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Twilight Sparkle will all be presiding. Princess Cadence and I have decided to go to the capital city on that day, as well."

"That way, the whole of the Equestrian Royalty will be present," Cadence added.

"I would have expected as much," Comet Frost perceived, "I can comprehend why you'd want to attend the Celebration. But I hope you do not plan to travel to Canterlot by yourselves."

"We don't," Shining Armor assured him, "My wife and I are going to have a group of the Royal Guard accompany us there. The members of this group will be specially selected by a high-ranking officer."

"That is why you are here, Commander," Cadence pronounced.

Comet Frost raised an eyebrow and proclaimed "I'm afraid I do not quite understand."

"At the ceremony, my husband will be presenting himself as 'Prince Shining Armor' rather than 'Captain Shining Armor,'" Cadence expounded, "Because of that, we do not think it would be appropriate if he was the one who put together our security detail."

"So another officer will be given that assignment," Shining Armor declared, "We both believe you are the most qualified person for that."

Comet Frost now fully realized what the Captain and the Princess were asking of him. After a moment of silence, he stated "With all due respect, what about Commander Plainview? He outranks me, so wouldn't he be the more ideal choice?"

"We've already spoken with Commander Plainview," Shining Armor apprised him, "In our absence, he will remain in the Crystal Empire to oversee and maintain its security. Whoever puts together our group will be supervising it, too. Naturally, we couldn't expect Commander Plainview to be in two places at once."

Comet Frost could not deny that his commanding office made a good point. After all, Commander Plainview had been in the Crystal Empire for at least two months longer than he had. He knew the palace and the city even better than the aqua stallion. It would make sense if he was appointed as its temporary guardian while Cadence and Shining Armor were away.

"In addition to that, Commander Plainview is not as close to the other guards as you are," Cadence debated, "I've seen how you interact with your subordinates. The majority of them seem to enjoy your company. You know what they are like both on-duty and off-duty. So for you, it should be relatively simple to pick the most eligible units for the security group."

Comet Frost thought about this for about ten seconds. Then he uttered solemnly "Your faith in my ability is very well-founded. I shall prove it as such. How many people would you like to have in this group?"

"Half a dozen would suffice," Shining Armor replied, "That doesn't including you, so altogether we would have seven. We will leave the selecting of the other six up to you."

Comet Frost nodded his head in acknowledgement and stated "Very well. You can rely on me to assemble the rest of the group."

"Thank you, Commander," Cadence said appreciatively, "You are dismissed."

Comet Frost rose from his seat, bowed in respect, and departed from the meeting chambers.

He decided to go ahead and start straightaway on putting together the security team. He could imagine it would not be a quick task. After all, there were literally scores of the Royal Guard in the Crystal Empire. While Comet Frost was acquainted with most of them, there were many that had sufficient merits to apply for a position on the team.

When Comet Frost got to his office, he dug out the personnel profiles for all of his colleagues. He quickly went to work examining them. He conducted the process of selecting the six units based on a variety of factors. These criteria included their field experience, their service records, the degree of their allegiance, and more.

After several hours of reviewing the profiles, Comet Frost managed to narrow down the six most qualified guards. Two were Earth Ponies, two were Unicorns, and two were Pegasi. Three of them were crystal ponies; the other three originated from another city in Equestria.

The crystal Earth Pony was a stallion named Wary Spot. He was one of the most attentive members of the Royal Guard. Even the stealthiest spies could not evade his notice.

The crystal Unicorn was a stallion named Charm Pitch. He had a substantial aptitude for defensive and invasive spells. Every time he had to enter a conflict, he always took down his opponents with a few bursts of magic from his horn.

The crystal Pegasus was a stallion named Rapid Zephyr. He was perhaps the speediest and most elusive flyer in the entire Crystal Empire. Whenever a hostile attempted to escape, he always caught them before they could get away.

The normal Earth Pony was a stallion named Sweat Breaker. He was amongst the largest and strongest stallions in the force. He was known to neutralize most of his opponents with a single punch.

The normal Unicorn was a stallion named Brusque Rush. He was a professional at organizing tactics and strategies for campaigns. His fellow officers could rely on him to determine the best course of action in any scenario.

The normal Pegasus was Flash Sentry. Comet Frost had selected him for quite a few reasons. Despite his rank and authority, he had a very likable personality. He treated his associates with thoughtfulness and sympathy. If the situation called for it, he was still willing to resort to fiercer means to protect those he cared about. There was nopony else in the force that Comet Frost preferred to be around more.

The next day, Comet Frost met with these officers and debriefed them on their new mission. All six of them accepted the terms of the assignment without hesitation, and they assured their superior officer that they would be ready by the time Princess Cadence and Shining Armor were ready to leave.

The subsequent days were spent preparing for the Summer Sun Celebration. Because the Crystal Empire had disappeared before Princess Celestia banished Princess Luna to the moon, the city's inhabitants had never actually observed the Summer Sun Celebration. This marked the first year that they would partake in the holiday with the rest of the nation. Needless to say, they were looking forward to it.

Comet Frost made certain that all six of his men made all the necessary arrangements before they left for Canterlot. They would be getting to Canterlot by means of a fortified crystal train. It had been built especially for Cadence and Shining Armor. After it was manufactured and inspected, Comet Frost worked out the posts for the other guards.

Everything regarding the events leading up to the Summer Sun Celebration went according to plan. It was not until the day of the Celebration itself that something unexpected happened.

Although the summer solstice was the longest day of the year, the Sun was not scheduled to rise until six o'clock. However, the Sun was up at exactly midnight. Its early arrival was not even the most jarring factor. The most disturbing part was that the Moon had not been lowered. Now both the Sun and the Moon were side-by-side in the sky.

This was just the first of the many strange events that happened that day. The Crystal Empire soon received word from Canterlot that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had disappeared. Shortly after, they heard news that Ponyville was being invaded. Somehow, a cluster of enormous, malignant weeds had sprouted from the Everfree Forest. They were attacking the citizens of Ponyville. The clouds over the city had become dark, spike-encrusted, and hostile.

So far, Ponyville was the only town that had been struck by these forces. But there was reason to believe that the weeds were expanding. They reaching out in all directions, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake. It seemed the weeds would not relent until they covered every last inch of space in Equestria.

When this theory became public knowledge, the other settlements went into a frenzy. Many people thought about stocking up on provisions and barricading themselves inside their house. Some other people wanted to consider evacuating the cities and relocating to a safe haven.

For some reason, the weeds were expanding the most slowly towards the north. This was good luck for the Crystal Empire, as it was located in northern Equestria.

However, the Empire was in just as much danger as the rest of the country. In anticipation of a possible incursion, the Royal Guard wanted to be prepared to counter any potential threats.

Shining Armor quickly brought together his highest-ranking officers in the meeting chambers. He informed them that he planned to take half of the Royal Guard to southern border of the Empire and establish a blockade. He ordered Commander Plainview to join them.

Comet Frost and Flash Sentry were instructed to take charge of the other half of the Royal Guard and use them to uphold the security of the palace. Once everypony had their orders, Shining Armor dismissed them and urged them to their posts.

An hour later, Shining Armor, Plainview, and a hundred of the Royal Guard made their way to the southern border to form a blockade. Comet Frost and Flash Sentry spent that time handing out orders to another hundred of the Royal Guard.

In the end, there were only five officers were not assigned to the blockade or the palace. These five were Wary Spot, Charm Pitch, Rapid Zephyr, Sweat Breaker, and Brusque Rush. Comet Frost had pulled them aside. Initially, he did not give them a reason why, but they got one once all their colleagues were gone.

Comet Frost explained that the seven of them would protect Princess Cadence during this ordeal. He commanded Flash Sentry and the five officers to come with him to the throne room. When they arrived there, they found Princess Cadence alone. She was seated at her throne.

When the seven stallions entered the room, the pink Alicorn rose from her throne and trotted over to them. She asked in anxiety "Have you heard anything new from Canterlot?"

"I'm afraid not, Your Highness," Flash Sentry apprised her, "But Captain Shining Armor is taking some precautions in case that threat ever reaches the Empire."

"Our main objective right now is to ensure your safety," Comet Frost declared.

The aqua stallion then distributed orders to his colleagues: "Wary, keep watch on the balcony. If you see even the slightest abnormality in the distance, report it immediately. Charm, cast every fortification spell you know on this room. I want to make it impenetrable, in case we have to barricade ourselves in it. Rapid, circle around the palace and look out for any vulnerabilities and hazards that could compromise the palace's security. If anypony tries to break in, arrest them. Sweat, wait outside the door to the throne room. Do not let anypony in here without authorization. Brusque, devise a few contingency plans. In the event that we have to evacuate the throne room, we'll need some backup strategies at the ready. Flash, stay here with me. The two of us will guard the Princess."

The six stallions acknowledged these commands and proceeded to carry them out. Wary Spot and Rapid Zephyr left through the door to the balcony. Sweat Breaker stepped outside the front entrance to the throne room. Brusque Rush stood off to the side and used some parchment, a quill, and ink to outline several plans to counter the impending danger. Charm Pitch scurried around the room and cast various spells along the walls, ceiling, and floor.

Flash Sentry and Comet Frost were the only ones who stayed with Princess Cadence. They planned to remain by her side until the threat posed by the Everfree Forest had been eliminated.

For a while, the three of them stood in silence at the center of the room. They simply watched as Charm Pitch rushed around the room and as Brusque Rush drafted more plans. Then they made their way to the end of the room. Cadence sat down at her throne. Flash Sentry stood to her left; Comet Frost stood to her right.

After a brief interval of silence, the pink Alicorn looked around at the orange Pegasus and the aqua Unicorn and asked them "Do you know the whereabouts of my husband?"

"He and Commander Plainview took a hundred of the Royal Guard to the Empire's southern border," Flash Sentry enlightened her.

"What are they doing down there?" Cadence inquired in intrigue

"They're forming a blockade," Comet Frost illuminated, "Captain Armor is concerned that those dangers from Everfree Forest may end up covering the rest of Equestria. He's preparing us for an invasion."

Cadence appeared somewhat stunned to hear this. She remarked in perplexity "Invasion? That's the last thing we should be worried about."

"The Captain does not believe so, Your Highness," Flash Sentry politely rejoined, "He has established that our first priority should be to ensure the Crystal Empire's well-being. He believes the best way to do that is to anticipate the worst."

"My husband is n fine officer, but even he can be wrong sometimes," Cadence professed, "We should be more focused on protecting the city, not its outskirts."

"The Captain realizes that," Comet Frost disclosed, "That is why he only took half our forces. The other half are here to guard the city."

"Dividing up our forces like that is a huge mistake," Cadence debated, "A kingdom cannot survive unless its people stay together. Especially in a time of crisis."

"We ARE together, Your Highness," Comet Frost declared, "You must understand that those dangers we mentioned are like a sickness. The sickness is spreading throughout the land. It has already claimed Ponyville, and it is expected to hit Canterlot soon. It is only a matter of time before it reaches the Crystal Empire as well. Whenever it does get here, we cannot be caught unawares."

"Hold on a moment," Flash Sentry interceded, "If the capital city falls, who's to say we would be any safer here, anyway?"

"This city survived an annexation by an ironfisted tyrant," Princess Cadence reminded them, "Even when he took the form of an abstract entity, we were able to push him back. If King Sombra couldn't subjugate us, we can easily hold off against a few giant, carnivorous weeds, too."

"I hope you're right," Comet Frost remarked, "But at least with Sombra, we knew what we were up against. There is no telling the full extent of what those weeds could be capable of."

"Whatever the perils, I'm confident that we can deal with them," Cadence avowed, "At any rate, we have more pressing matters to worry about."

"Like what, Your Highness?" queried Flash Sentry.

"For starters, the disappearance of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna," Cadence explicated, "The entire Canterlot division of the Royal Guard cannot account for when or how they went missing. They simply vanished very suddenly and without anypony noticing. There must be some explanation for that, yet we're not doing a thing to find one."

"That is not entirely true," Comet Frost steadily apprised her, "We've been notified that Princess Twilight and her companions are looking in to the affair. She believes they have found a lead somewhere in Ponyville."

"Ponyville?" Cadence repeated in surprise, "They're there now?"

"Not as of half-hour ago," Flash Sentry disclosed, "We were informed that they went to investigate this lead in the Everfree Forest."

Cadence was shocked to hear this bit of information. She queried in concern "They went into the Forest itself? They went into the very source of all this danger?"

"Yes, Your Highness," Comet Frost affirmed, "You should know that they also went in there without backup."

Once more, Cadence was stunned. She got up from her throne, frowned in dissatisfaction, and declared "That is completely unacceptable."

Immediately after she said this, she descended the short staircase in front of her throne and started trotting towards the entrance to the throne room. Comet Frost and Flash Sentry quickly followed her. On the way, the latter inquired "Where are you going, Your Highness?"

"I'm leaving for Ponyville," she expounded.

Now it was the stallions' turn to be astonished. Comet Frost walked alongside the princess and stated "Why would you possibly wish to travel there of all places? And at a time like this?"

"I know Twilight Sparkle very well," Cadence elucidated, "In a way, I helped raise her. She is very intelligent and very meticulous. If she claims she has found a lead, then I believe she is on to something. However, she also has a habit of being overconfident and unwilling to rely on the aid of others. She may be willing to accept my assistance if I offer it."

"If you do not mind me asking, what exactly would you do to assist her, Your Highness?" Flash Sentry questioned.

"Specifically, I am not entirely sure," Cadence revealed, "But I'm certain I could find a way to help her and her friends with their investigation once I get there."

"Princess, I understand your wish to provide your assistance here," Comet Frost remarked, "However, I do not think I can guarantee your safety if you travelled to Ponyville."

"What about the safety of Princess Twilight and her friends?" Cadence countered, "For all we know, they may be walking into a death trap."

"I appreciate and sympathize with your concerns, Princess," Comet Frost assured her, "But it was their choice to go into the Everfree Forest. It was their choice to gamble with their lives. They would not have gone in there unless they deemed that risk worthy."

"He does have a point," Flash Sentry commented, "Aside from that, haven't Princess Twilight and her friends saved this country a hoofful of times already?"

"Yes, they have done so at least four times," Cadence confirmed, "I helped them get through two of those ordeals. I may be able to help them this time, too. But the only way I can do that is if I joined them."

"It may not be my place to say so, but I would not advocate that, Your Highness," Comet Frost interjected, "The danger you would be up against is unacceptable. Aside from that, didn't you make an argument only minutes ago about the importance of keeping the people of the Crystal Empire together?"

"Indeed I did," Cadence acknowledged, "The Empire is together right now. In the same way, the rulers of Equestria should function together, as well. Consider the whereabouts of Twilight and her friends. This is the Everfree Forest we're talking about. Anything could happen to them while they're in there."

"All the more reason why you must not go," Comet Frost countered, "We have already lost two of our leaders. The loss of a third would be devastating enough. But I shudder to think of what might happen if we lost all four of our leaders in the same day."

"I have no intention of doing anything so reckless, Commander," Cadence assured him, "However, I do intend to sit by and do nothing while my sister-in-law is out there doing all the work. She will need all the support she can get, and I plan to lend it to her."

Cadence seemed determine to end this conversation. She started making her way back to the entrance of the throne room. Before she was even halfway there, Comet Frost stepped in front of her and stated firmly "Your Highness, if I sound impertinent, then I beseech your pardon. But I cannot allow you to put yourself in harm's way like that."

Cadence was quite alarmed to hear such a resolved statement come out of Comet Frost's mouth. Flash Sentry, Brusque Rush, and Charm Pitch were surprised, as well. The three Royal Guards stared at their superior officer as if he was going insane.

After some uncomfortable silence, Cadence grimaced at the aqua stallion and conjectured "Are you saying that if I attempt to leave the Crystal Empire, you will actually physically stop me?"

"I would never do that, Your Highness," he reassured her her, "But you tasked me with heading up your security detail. I cannot do that job unless I do what I deem necessary to ascertain your safety. As of right now, that's my number one goal."

"I thought you told me that looking after the Empire was your foremost responsibility," Cadence recalled.

"No, Captain Shining Armor believes the Empire's well-being is top priority," Comet Frost clarified, "I, on the other hoof, believe that YOUR well-being is more important than anything. In the time since you've been here, Your Highness, you've provided hope and faith to a people who were deprived of those qualities for over a millennium. You've given life back to the Crystal Empire. Currently, you're the only member of the Equestrian Royalty who is not in imminent danger. It would be a travesty of monumental proportions if anything were to happen to you. I know very well that you are under no obligation whatsoever to take orders from me or anypony else. But I urge you to hear me out. Please, stay here. Stay where you are truly needed. I beg of you."

The following three minutes were spent in total silence. Although he was a patient stallion, Comet Frost felt as though he could not wait for Cadence to reply. She seemed to be deliberating on whether she would listen to Comet Frost's advice or write him up for insubordination. Flash Sentry, Charm Pitch, and Brusque Rush were just as eager to hear their princess's response.

Ultimately, Cadence just sighed in amazement, looked the aqua stallion in the eyes, and stated cheekily "You have quite a way with words, Commander."

"Uh… thank you, Your Highness," Comet Frost stated in ambiguity, "Assuming that that's meant to be a compliment."

"It is," Cadence informed him, "As per your suggestion, I will stay here in the Crystal Empire. But if we get any news updates from Ponyville or Canterlot, please have them brought directly to me."

"It will be done, Your Majesty," Comet Frost guaranteed her. He turned to the orange stallion and instructed him "Flash, swing by the relay room. See if anything new has shown up on the bulletin."

"You got it," Flash Sentry said in compliance. He made his way to the entrance of the throne room and headed out into the corridors.

Brusque Rush and Charm Pitch went back to work. Comet Frost and Cadence were left on their own for a while.

Eventually, Comet Frost looked to his leader and addressed her with "Your Highness?"

"Yes?" she responded.

"I apologize if I appeared to be challenging your authority," he told her sincerely, "It's just that… well…"

"You don't have to explain yourself to me, Commander," Cadence assured him, "I actually admire an officer who is not afraid to voice his own opinion. That's the sign of a stallion who can think for himself and for others."

He smiled and told her "Well, then I thank you, again."

She smiled back and stated "You are very welcome."

The next few hours were spent waiting endlessly for something to happen. Every now and then, Flash Sentry stopped by the relay room to look for more news from Ponyville or Canterlot. Cadence and Comet Frost were hoping he would return with something, but he kept coming back empty-hoofed.

At one point, he actually did return with something. It was a communique from Ponyville saying that the threat posed by the Everfree Forest had been neutralized. In addition to that, Princess Luna and Princess Celestia had been rescued. Best of all, Princess Twilight and her friends were totally alright.

When this joyous news reached the Crystal Empire, Shining Armor quickly lowered the alert level and disbanded the blockade. When he returned to the palace, his wife welcomed him back with open front legs. He congratulated Comet Frost, Flash Sentry, and the other guards on how well that had kept the palace safe.

Now that Equestria was no longer in any danger, the Summer Sun Celebration was back on schedule. Commander Plainview was given provisional command of the Crystal Empire. While he oversaw everything that went on there, Princess Cadence and Shining Armor travelled to Canterlot, just like they planned. They were accompanied by Comet Frost, Flash Sentry, Wary Spot, Charm Pitch, Rapid Zephyr, Sweat Breaker, and Brusque Rush, just like they planned. They arrived a few minutes late, just like they planned. Except not really.

The Celebration itself was magnificent. Flash Sentry almost had another accidental run-in with Twilight Sparkle, but they just missed each other.

Comet Frost still remained by Princess Cadence's side. He planned to remain there until they were back at the Empire. He was willing to stay by her for as long as he needed to be.

Little did he suspect that he would be by her side for a very, very long time. And after a certain amount of time, he would not just be standing there as her bodyguard.


	3. Worthy Of Trust

**Note: Apologies if this seems like a short chapter. The next one will have more detail, as well as a longer description of certain events in the story. Hope you enjoy this update.**

The Summer Sun Celebration only lasted for a single day, but Cadence and Shining Armor stayed in Canterlot for much longer. They wanted a chance to mingle with the other members of the Equestrian Royalty, and the Celebration provided the perfect opportunity for that.

While the couple was in Canterlot, Comet Frost and the rest of the security detail stayed close to them. They were there to ensure their well-being and protect them.

That's not to say the seven stallions were working the entire time they were there. They had time to interact with the locals when they were off-duty.

Wary Spot, Charm Pitch, and Rapid Zephyr had never been outside the Crystal Empire. They were intrigued to be in a town with a predominantly non-Crystal populace. Sweat Breaker and Brusque Rush introduced them to many of their colleagues at the castle.

On one occasion, Flash Sentry ran into Twilight Sparkle once again. Fortunately, this time she did not physically bump into him. It also happened when he was off-duty. Because of that, the lavender mare and the orange stallion had a chance to do more than just acknowledge each other. This time, they were able to exchange words as well.

Comet Frost did not protest Flash Sentry's openness with Twilight Sparkle, but he did give him a friendly warning about fraternizing with her. Luckily, Flash Sentry knew better than to cross that line.

Of course, some would say that Comet Frost was one to talk. While in Canterlot, he spent most of his time with Cadence and Shining Armor. That included the majority of his leisure time. This was not because he had a poor social life or that he was a workaholic. He was a very popular stallion, and he valued his time off just as much as anypony else. In actuality, he stayed by Cadence and Shining Armor because he greatly enjoyed their presence. They seemed to appreciate his company as well. Although Shining Armor and Cadence were his boss and his employer respectively, there were times when they seemed to regard Comet Frost as a friend.

In addition to that, the aqua stallion could not help but admire Cadence and Shining Armor when they were together. Comet Frost had never really been a romantic type, but he liked watching how couples interacted. The affection they had for each other was abundantly evident. After all, a little more than a year ago, their love had saved Canterlot from a Changeling invasion. Nowadays, their bond was just as strong.

Or so it seemed.

Four days after the Summer Sun Celebration, Cadence, Shining Armor, and their security detail returned to the Crystal Empire. Once they got back, Shining quickly dropped his role as "Prince Shining Armor" and went back to "Captain Shining Armor." After donning his uniform, he resumed his duties as the commanding officer of the Crystal Empire's Royal Guard.

As the commanding officer, it was no surprise that most of Shining Armor's duties tended to be particularly time-consuming and strenuous. They were rather broad, as well. They ranged from conducting reconnaissance on the city limits to approving the new trainees to organizing work shift time tables. One could say Shining Armor did more work than anypony else in the Empire.

That was truly saying something, as there was no shortage of work in the Crystal Empire. A thousand years of isolation had rendered the town in need of modernization. Ponies from various cities in Equestria had come seeking jobs to improve and remodel the place. In the year since its return, the Empire was pretty much up to date on the customs and cultures of present-day Equestria.

Since the Crystal Empire had been selected to host the Equestria Games this year, the townsfolk anticipated that they would be even busier than the previous year. The stadium next to the palace was built to accommodate tens of thousands of ponies. Given the popularity of the Equestria Games, it was logical to assume that every single seat in the building would be occupied at the event.

Cadence and Shining Armor consulted their advisors on how to prepare for the arrival of tens of thousands of ponies. The overall conclusion the Council reached was that there would be further need for expansion in the Crystal Empire. They would need more hotels, more department stores, more restaurants, etc. In their mind, tourism was always good for the Crystal Empire, but the numbers they forecasted for the Games vastly overshadowed the town's current population. They had to be ready to receive everypony who came to them. The Council advocated getting started on this project straightaway.

Cadence and Shining Armor found this an ideal proposition. Shining Armor immediately busied himself with seeking out the necessary capital. He started by bringing together everypony that would be needed, such as construction workers and architects. He worked out a plan with them for expanding the Empire outwards, as well as building it up from within.

After the architects spend weeks debating and outlining their plans, the construction workers got to work. They were excellent builders, but they could only go so fast. Shining Armor assigned a group of Royal Guard to supervise the production of the buildings and ensure that everything was going along smoothly. It may have seemed like a strange job for the Royal Guard, but these were arrangements for the Equestria Games, and the Games were regarded as much a political event as a social event. Because of that, Shining Armor felt it appropriate that the Royal Guard monitor the progress of the work teams. He brought it upon himself to head them up.

Despite how busy he was, Shining Armor never appeared fatigued or aggravated. Like his younger sister, he was well-known for his ability to multitask and handle huge workloads in a limited amount of time. However, unlike his younger sister, he had a habit of neglecting to make time for those close to him. Including the mare he shared his bed with.

Princess Cadence did appreciate Shining Armor's vigor and devotion to his work. But all the same, sometimes she was inclined to wonder what he valued more: his time as a guard or his time as her husband. She could not bring herself to ask him, as she felt he already had enough on his mind at present.

At least before the Equestria Games were announced, Cadence was able to be with Shining Armor on a regular basis. But now that he was preoccupied with overseeing the preparations, his wife had no way of knowing when she would see him. If she was lucky, he would return to the palace in time for dinner. If he did not show up there, the best she could hope for was to see him when she went to bed.

As much as she disliked this new routine, there was very little she could do to change it. She had tried speaking to her husband about taking some time off, but he had refused to consider the idea. Shining Armor only trusted himself to get his own work done.

His wife tried to be understanding and patient with him, but before long, she started to feel somewhat resentful. She never told him about those feelings. She had no intention of telling anypony about them. And she never would have, had it not been for a certain aqua stallion.

One morning, Comet Frost visited the relay room. He always stopped by that room regularly to see if anything new had shown up on the bulletin. Most of the time, the news they received was just meant for the Royal Guard or Princess Cadence's Council. However, today's news was addressed to the Princess herself.

"Better swing by the throne room," Comet Frost muttered under his breath.

On his way to the throne room, Comet Frost briefly looked the document over. Its contents pertained to the Equestria Games. Upon his discovery, he lightly scoffed and muttered under his breath "Seems like the Equestria Games is the only thing anypony in this town can think about these days."

When he arrived at the throne room, Comet Frost found several of his fellow officers standing guard along the walls. However, Princess Cadence was not seated at her throne. Comet Frost inquired about her whereabouts to his colleagues, and they informed him that the pink Alicorn was outside on the balcony.

Comet Frost soon made his way to the other end of the throne room and stepped outside. Sure enough, Cadence was standing at the very end of the platform. She was leaning against the rail with her front hooves folded on top, and she was gazing downwards. She appeared to be focused on something that was happening on the ground below.

"Excuse me, Your Highness," Comet Frost politely called out.

The pink Alicorn looked over her shoulder to see who was there. When she realized it was the aqua stallion, she smiled and stated "Good morning, Commander Frost. What brings you here?"

"I have something to share with you," Comet Frost replied. He added in "I could just leave it here if you're preoccupied with something else."

"At the present, I'm not," she disclosed, turning towards the officer, "Come on over."

Comet Frost nodded and trotted over to the pink Alicorn. He held the document out to her, saying "This just popped up on the bulletin."

"What is it?" she asked as she took it in her hoof.

"An article about the Equestria Games," he answered her.

At that, Cadence frowned, sighed in annoyance, and commented "Why is it everypony is so focused on the Equestria Games these days?"

"I'm not going to lie; I was literally thinking the exact same thing on my way here, Your Highness," Comet Frost remarked, smirking.

"Then you and I are perhaps the only ones around who aren't completely obsessed with them," Cadence perceived.

Comet Frost noted that Cadence sounded very frustrated when she made that last statement. He inquired in concern "Does something trouble you, Your Highness?"

"No…" Cadence tentatively began. Then she sighed again and declared "Actually, yes, Commander."

"May I ask what?" he queried.

Cadence did not answer immediately. After a long pause, she looked up at the aqua stallion and told him "Are you certain you'd want to know, Commander? This isn't really your problem."

"If you are bothered by it, Your Highness, then it **is** my problem," Comet Frost pointed out, "My job is to look out for your well-being. Not just your physical well-being, but your emotional well-being as well. I'm willing to give you my assistance in any way I can."

Cadence lightly smiled again and said "I appreciate that, Commander. I suppose maybe you **can **help me."

"Very well," Comet Frost coincided, "What would you like me to do?"

"Right now, I'd just like you to listen," Cadence requested.

"Certainly," he stated, "You've got my undivided attention."

There was another brief pause, and then Cadence broke the silence by saying "In the past month, how often have you encountered my husband?"

Comet Frost thought through his memories of the last several weeks, and he tried to recall all the times he had seen Captain Shining Armor. Only now did he realize there were very few of them. He elucidated with "Not that many, Your Highness. Other than the weekly briefings on Sundays, I've only been in the same room or hallway as him about eight or nine times."

"Is that unusual?" Cadence asked him.

"Very unusual," Comet Frost affirmed, "On average, I meet with him at least twice a day, and no fewer than four times on Sundays. But over these past thirty days, including the briefings, I've only seen him twelve or thirteen times."

Cadence scoffed and stated sardonically "That's still more than the number of times **I've** seen him."

Comet Frost was surprised to hear this. "How often have you seen him, Your Highness?"

"About twice a week," Cadence illuminated, "Yesterday made three for this one. Altogether, I've seen him on ten different occasions in the past four weeks."

"That's rather strange," Comet Frost remarked, "And unfortunate. What's been keeping him away from you?"

"He has a previous engagement with an upcoming event," Cadence explicated, "I'd have thought you'd already be aware of that, Commander. Shining Armor must have mentioned that on one of the times you saw him."

"Well, he did say something about 'preparing the city for a temporary mass pony migration,'" Comet Frost recounted, "I just assumed he was referring to the Equestria Games."

"He was," Cadence disclosed, "Apparently, the Equestria Games are now his top priority. He's devoted a lot of his time and resources to overseeing the preparations."

"Really?" Comet Frost uttered in astonishment, "Peculiar. He told me and my fellow officers that he would just check in on the preparations a few times each day."

"That may have been his original plan," "But he must have decided that dropping by and asking for a progress report was not enough. He's literally spent almost every waking moment down there. I don't think I've ever seen him more determined to get something done perfectly."

"Well, I can understand why he'd want to supervise," Comet Frost thought aloud, "After all, the entire city is preoccupied with the expansion. With all that activity going on at the same time, the Royal Guard would need a high-ranking officer to coordinate them. However, there's no reason why it has to be Captain Armor. Commander Plainview or I could just as easily manage that. Maybe I could speak to him about giving the task to one of us for a while."

"I wouldn't advise that," Cadence informed him, "I actually did suggest that to him at dinner last night. But he flat-out refused to consider stepping down. A couple hours later when we went to bed, I tried to get him to change his mind again, but he declined again. In a much more eloquent manner, I might add."

"What do you mean 'eloquent?'" Comet Frost inquired.

"For one thing, he seemed very restless and irritated at the time," Cadence recalled, "When I tried to continue talking about it, he shot my idea down again. He even raised his voice to emphasize his disapproval."

"He actually yelled at you?" Comet Frost presumed in surprise.

"Yes, and that was what encouraged me to change the subject," Cadence explained, "He looked as though he was going to genuinely lose his temper if I didn't let the issue go. I don't think I've ever seen him like that."

"Neither have I," Comet Frost stated, "Later on, maybe I could talk to him about this subject. You never know; maybe he'll be willing to listen to somepony in uniform."

"A logical observation, Commander," Cadence professed, "But you probably shouldn't bother. If Shining Armor won't listen to his wife, I doubt he'd listen to anypony else. Even his most trusted coworkers."

"Oh… that's a fine point," Comet Frost acknowledged, "One I probably should have considered first. Boy, do I feel like a fool."

"You're not a fool," Cadence assured him, snickering, "What makes you think you are one?"

"The fact that I forgot that Captain Shining Armor doesn't always think like an officer," Comet Frost responded, "You see, family and work are equally important, but the Royal Guard are instructed to keep them separate. A lot of my fellow officers are able to make time for both, including Captain Armor."

"What about you?" Cadence questioned.

"No, I'm not one of them," Comet Frost expounded, "I've been in the force for so long that I've almost forgotten that there can be a link between family and work. In fact, there are only two things I truly believe in: my job and my friends."

Cadence was astounded to hear this. She stated in perplexity "Don't you have a family, Commander?"

"Yes…" the aqua stallion began uneasily, "But I haven't seen any of my relatives in a long time. I'm not exactly on good terms with them."

"Why not?" the pink Alicorn queried in interest.

Comet Frost hesitated for a minute. He did not like discussing his background with anypony. Not just because it disturbed him, but also because he did not wish to make anypony else feel disturbed. He worried that he would do just that by sharing certain memories of his foalhood.

Ultimately, he illuminated Princess Cadence with "It's a bit of an unpleasant matter. By 'a bit,' I mean 'a copious extent.' I don't think you'd really want to know about my life, Your Highness."

He had hoped that that would be enough to change the subject. But Cadence was not about to let the issue go that easily. She stepped forward, looked the Unicorn in the eye, and asked him "Does it really bother you that much?"

"Yes, it does," Comet Frost confirmed, "But it's not myself I'm worried about. I can stand reflecting on the memories. If I couldn't, I wouldn't be standing here. The one I'm really concerned for is you."

"Me?" Cadence repeated in confusion.

"Yes, I feel it would be inappropriate to discuss the early stages of my life with Royalty," Comet Frost clarified.

"Why do you say that?" Cadence enquired.

"For one thing, my past is full of dismal events," Comet Frost revealed, "Events I would regard as horrific, shameful, and even somewhat traumatizing. Aside from that, what really matters is that they're all in the past. As terrible as they were, I've moved on. I don't see any point in bringing them up to anypony else. If I did, I would probably just end up unsettling whoever I spoke to. The last thing I'd ever want to do is make you feel uncomfortable."

Cadence understood his reasoning, and she certainly appreciated it. All the same, she was still motivated by compassion and inquisitiveness to get a more direct answer out of Comet Frost. She informed him "If you're worried about unsettling me, then don't let that stop you, Commander. You should know I'm no stranger to shock. You can speak freely."

"I appreciate the sentiment, Your Highness," Comet Frost disclosed, "But this is my problem. There's no reason I should make it yours, too."

"Funny," Cadence commented, smirking lightly, "You told me that exact same thing a moment ago, remember?"

"Yes, I did," Comet Frost realized.

"So, I'll give you the same response you gave me," Cadence thought aloud, "I am willing to provide you the same type of console. After all, you convinced me that I could open up to you on my feelings for my husband. In the same way, you can open up to me about the past events of your life. Regardless of how dark they are."

Comet Frost was intrigued by Cadence's persistence. He inquired cheekily "Are you ordering me to reminisce on my life, Your Highness?"

"No," Cadence guaranteed him, chuckling a bit, "Not everything that comes out of my mouth is a command. I'm speaking to you as a friend."

"A friend?" Comet Frost asked in bewilderment.

"Yes," the pink Alicorn affirmed, "Right now, think of me as a friend, Comet."

That last word took the aqua stallion by surprise. Cadence had never addressed him by his first name. Come to think of it, he had never seen her address any of the Royal Guard informally. She must have been doing this to assure him that he could be frank with her. In his mind, she was making a very compelling case.

Eventually, Comet Frost inquired "Is there any particular reason why you're so interested in this?"

"You stayed with me during the incident with Sunset Shimmer," Cadence reminded him, "And you protected me from the Everfree Forest and my own rashness during the Summer Sun Celebration. You were there for me throughout two ordeals. Right now, other than my husband, there is nopony in this entire Empire that I trust more than you."

"I'm flattered to hear you say that, Your Highness," Comet Frost said appreciatively.

Cadence grinned and told him "Please, just call me Cadence."

Comet Frost was surprised by that statement. He asked skeptically "Are you certain that would be proper?"

Cadence just rolled her eyes and said in amusement "Yes, I'm quite certain. Stop being an officer for just ten minutes, Comet."

"Alright, as you wish," Comet Frost avowed, smirking widely, "I don't think I could cover the long version of the story of my life in ten minutes, though."

"Then just give me the short version," Cadence proposed, "That or stay with me for a longer period of time."

"It would probably be best if I went with the first option," Comet Frost decided, "I have to get to the arsenal in a half-hour. The quartermaster believes that some of the weapons have been lifted without authorization, so he asked me to go over the inventory with him to see if anything is missing."

"Very well," Cadence coincided, "You can see to that later. For now, I'd like you to stay here and tell me about yourself."

"Then I shall, Your High- er, Cadence," Comet Frost uttered in compliance.

As Princess Cadence laughed as his mistake, the Royal Guard officer could not help but chuckle as well. Then he said somewhat apologetically "Sorry, that'll take some getting used to."

"No worries," she assured him, "When Shining first started courting me, he felt just as awkward when we started going on a first-name basis."

Comet Frost chuckled and said "That sounds like him. On-duty, he's all about formality. Off-duty, he's as candid as Flash Sentry."

"Yeah, that's definitely him," Cadence confirmed, "But we're not talking about him or me. Let's talk about you."

Comet Frost nodded in acceptance and said "Alright, then. But please promise me one thing."

"What?" she asked in interest.

"If I start to get too graphic or too depressing, feel free to ask me to stop," Comet Frost stated, "I won't be offended or anything. Just say the word and I'll end the discussion."

"Okay, you got it," Cadence remarked.

There was another long period of silence. Comet Frost contemplated how to start the recollection of his foalhood. Ultimately, he figured that he may as well pick up at the very beginning. He was still somewhat skeptical about revealing everything to Princess Cadence, but he was convinced that she was willing to listen to whatever he had to say. After all, he now had the privilege of being on a first-name basis with her. No other member of the Royal Guard could make that claim. Except her husband.


	4. Haunting Memories

Comet Frost did regard himself as much of a storyteller. Not that he did not have a vivid imagination. He simply preferred listening over speaking. Aside from that, he had never been especially interested in fairy tales or other works of fictions. He preferred to talk about real things that had taken place in real life. For that reason, he felt he would not have any circumstantial problem discussing his backstory with Princess Cadence.

However, he was a little uncertain about how to start, as he had never discussed his foalhood with another pony. He was hoping to start out soft and gradually transition into the darker parts. Comet Frost rubbed his chin and muttered quietly "Now, where should I begin?"

"The very beginning, of course," Princess Cadence wittily replied.

"Of course," the aqua stallion commented, scoffing lightly.

The pink Alicorn suggested "Start by telling me about your early years."

"Very well," he coincided, "I was born to a middle-class family in Fillydelphia. My father was an insurance sales representative, and my mother was an attorney. I was the eldest child. My brother was born when I was two, and my sister was born when I was four. But you probably already know about them."

"Actually, I do," Cadence informed him, "I read your personnel profile the day you transferred here. It contained a list of your immediate family."

"I figured as much," Comet Frost remarked, "There was once a time when I deeply cared for every pony on that list, and they cared for me in return. Nowadays, they're about as close to me as the people I protect you from."

"How did that happen?" Princess Cadence asked in perplexity.

"It was the result of a long and complex chain of events," Comet Frost elucidated. He looked off to the side and paused for a moment. Then he stated "It all started when I was a colt. Back then, I was a much different pony. I was never as outgoing or as popular as I am now. During elementary and middle school, I was something of an outcast to my fellow students."

"Why is that?" Cadence enquired.

"The main reason was this," Comet Frost enlightened her, gesturing to his eyes, "Where I come from, people are fond of pointing out the flaws of other people. Most of the time, they do it for fun or to promote their self-esteem. Foals tend to be the most relentless and unsympathetic. So as you can imagine, having mismatched irises made me an easy target as an object of ridicule. From my first day of school onward, my peers would routinely pester me about them."

Cadence seemed somewhat concerned by the implications of that last statement. She queried "Were any of things they did particularly hurtful?"

"Oh my, yes," Comet Frost candidly admitted, "I was a lot more sensitive back then, and much more insecure. My classmates could be rather creative with their insults. For instance, several suggested painting over one of my pupils so it would match the other, and one of them actually tried to do it. If our art teacher hadn't been so attentive, he probably would have succeeded. But that was one of the least harmful pranks my classmates pulled. More often than not, by the end of the day, I would be reduced to tears."

Cadence frowned in sadness and stated assuredly "Oh, I'm… I'm so sorry to hear that, Comet. I had no idea your foalhood was so difficult."

"I appreciate that, Your Highness," Comet Frost told her.

"Cadence," she corrected him.

He chuckled and nodded his head lightly "Right, Cadence. Thank you for saying that. But you don't need to feel sorry for me. I'm considerably more assertive and spirited now than when I was a foal. These days, I don't let insults, accusations, taunts, or anything of the sort bother me. I don't take that nonsense from anypony. Except Commander Plainview and your husband, that is. But that's different."

"I should say so," Cadence concurred, "My husband would never mistreat people like that. Aside from that, there is no excuse for how you were bullied. It's absolutely appalling that you were harassed simply because your eyes are not the same color. Your peers should have known that that was out of your control."

"I understand what you're saying," Comet Frost disclosed, "Back then, I couldn't comprehend why everypony saw the need to badger me for something I couldn't help. I mean, it was not my own fault that I was born with a red eye and a blue eye. I tried to explain that to my classmates, but my attempt to reason with them was wasted."

"Didn't any of your teachers try to intervene?" Cadence conjectured.

"Yes, but they didn't have much luck," Comet Frost responded, "I went to a very large school with a relatively small staff. The zero-tolerance policy wasn't enforced very strongly there. It was surprisingly easy to break the rules and get away with it. And, of course, I wasn't the only one with problems. The teachers couldn't afford to give me special treatment when they had hundreds of other fillies and colts to supervise and educate."

"That does make some sense," Cadence perceived, "But what about your parents? Didn't they do anything?"

"They never even knew," Comet Frost bluntly remarked.

Cadence was surprised to hear this response. She raised an eyebrow and said in bewilderment "They didn't?"

"No, they were essentially in the dark," he confirmed, "But not for the reason you may think. It wasn't as though my parents didn't care about my emotional well-being or that my teachers weren't concerned. This time, it was my doing. I kept my classmates' abuse towards me a secret from my mother and father. I went to great length to ensure that they never found out."

This time, Cadence was stunned and a little confused. She muttered "What would have possibly motivated you to do that?"

"I didn't want them to worry," he told her simply.

"They were your parents," she pointed out, "It was their job to worry,"

"I know, but there's more to it than that," Comet Frost explicated, "Despite the relentless maltreatment I received at school, I managed to put up with it. You see, regardless of how bad things got, there was still something that got me through the day. That was the thought in the back of my mind that once the final bell rang, I would be going home to my parents and siblings, who loved and accepted me as the pony I was, mismatched eyes and all."

"Well, that's certainly wonderful, Comet," Cadence remarked, "But it still doesn't explain why you didn't talk to your parents about your troubles at school."

"I had a simple reason," he illuminated, "Simple yet methodical. My house was the only place where I felt totally safe and secure. I feared that if I let my parents know about the bullying, they would do whatever they deemed necessary to get it to stop. Who knows what would have happened then? I probably would have been labeled a coward by my classmates for 'running home crying to mommy and daddy.' I also may have gathered more unwanted attention, and my parents might have become overprotective of me. Essentially, I didn't tell them about my school problems because I didn't want to risk bringing those problems to my home. If that were to happen, I would lose the one place where I felt totally at peace."

Cadence understood this reasoning completely, and she was even a little impressed by it. She tilted her head towards the aqua stallion and observed "That's some very practical thinking for a colt."

"I get what you mean," Comet Frost brusquely remarked, "When your parents are a lawyer and an insurance salesperson, it's easy to develop a more dogmatic and realistic view of life at any earlier age. That's what happened to me. In addition to that, I also matured faster than my entire class. Both physically and mentally."

"What about emotionally?" Cadence queried.

"Yes, emotionally, too," Comet Frost affirmed, "By the time I was ten years old, I was able to ignore my classmates' derisive behavior. However, that's not to say I was completely unaffected by it. Overtime, because of my peers' rudeness, I became more spiteful and resentful towards other people. I deliberately avoided social interaction and conversation every chance I got. You could say that my persona had become ice cold."

"As cold as your name?" Cadence wryly theorized.

Comet Frost scoffed and cheekily professed "Actually, that's a fairly accurate assessment. During middle school, I was about as icy as winter. In fact, I'm not certain if I got my cutie mark because of my withdrawn demeanor, or because of my proficiency with weather spells."

"I'd pick the latter," the pink Alicorn declared, "I've never heard of a pony whose special talent was being a pessimist."

"That's a good point," Comet Frost stated, "After all, if I really did get my cutie mark for being a nihilist, it probably would have manifested itself in a symbol other than a snowflake. Aside from that, the circumstances under which I gained my cutie mark suggest that it was my magic that helped me gain it and not my character."

"How so?" Cadence asked him in intrigue.

"Well, I got my cutie mark in the summer, during the vacation," Comet Frost informed her, "Naturally, none of my classmates were around to aggravate me, so I had no reason to feel cynical. However, it was an abnormally hot summer that year. Like record-breaking or something. Even with air-conditioning, the heat was nearly unbearable. So I practiced my chilling spells so that my family and I could cope with the high temperature. One morning, I tried covering our backyard with snow. I concentrated a little too hard and I ended up covering our entire neighborhood by mistake. The snow didn't melt for four days, but nopony complained. To them, it was like getting a drink of cold water after traversing through an arid desert. Best of all, after that day, there was one less blank flank at my house."

"Well, there you go," Cadence remarked, smiling brightly, "It was your magic that earned you your cutie mark after all."

"Indeed," Comet Frost coincided, "It also earned me a lot of friends and respect."

"It did?" said Cadence.

"Ho, yeah," Comet Frost buoyantly affirmed, "Fillydelphia's a large city, but word travels around it quickly. During that scorching hot summer, everypony was desperate to find a way to cool down. So when they heard about a young colt in town who had the ability to produce a minor blizzard in his suburb, my neighborhood soon became a lot more crowded."

Cadence laughed at this statement. Then she asked "How did that work out? Were you able to give the entire city a break from the heat?"

"Just about," Comet Frost replied, "I've always believed in helping my fellow pony, so I was willing to use my ability to help the town cool down. I even shared my ability with my fellow students when they came by. They were extremely grateful for that. So grateful that almost none of them ever teased me again."

"That's good to know," Cadence commented, "Did there ever come a time when nopony at all bothered you?"

"Actually, there was such a time," Comet Frost informed her. He paused for a moment, and then he looked the princess in the eye and told her "But it wasn't under very favorable circumstances."

"What do you mean?" Cadence queried worriedly.

Comet Frost did not answer straightaway. He spent a minute debating over whether or not he should actually continue. He was worried that if he went on, he would start to greatly disturb Princess Cadence. However, at this point, she seemed captivated by his story, and her eyes beckoned him to keep telling it. Ultimately, he let out a deep sigh and said "This is where the story starts to get really dismal."

"More dismal than being tormented by your peers every day for the most of the first nine years of your life?" Cadence hypothesized.

"Far more dismal, Your Highness," he unhappily confirmed.

"Well, go ahead and continue," Cadence calmly proposed, "I'm certain I can handle it. And remember, it's Cadence."

"Sorry," he told her sincerely. There was a brief pause as Comet Frost prepared to continue with his story. He wanted to describe it accurately without making it too graphic. After a bit, he turned to Cadence and began with "Two years after I got my cutie mark, Fillydelphia was struck by… another dramatic increase in temperature. But this one took place during the academic year, and it was not caused by a natural heat wave. In fact, the only place that was effected was my school. You see, one morning, the roof of the main building… well, it spontaneously combusted."

Cadence was alarmed by this revelation. "There was a fire at your school?"

"Yes, but nopony knows how it started," Comet Frost informed her, "Maybe a chemical experiment went wrong, maybe there was a natural gas leak, maybe somepony was recklessly playing with matches, maybe a flame spell got out of control. For all we know, it might have even been the work of an arsonist."

"That's dreadful," Cadence commented, "Arson itself is reprehensible enough, but the thought of setting fire to a school… why kind of monster would do such a thing?"

"The kind I pray neither of us will ever meet," Comet Frost thought aloud, "At any rate, after the fire started, it did not take long for the faculty to take action. While the blaze was spreading quickly, they were able to evacuate most of the classrooms. Thanks to our monthly fire drills, nopony panicked. Once we were outside, the dean and the principal took roll. While they did that, most of us gathered with friends or family. So naturally, the first two people I sought out were my brother and sister. However, I quickly discovered that they weren't with their classes or their own friends. By then, the dean and the principal realized that several members from the younger grades were unaccounted for. Both my siblings were two of them."

Cadence's breath seemed to go away at that. Sensing the princess's discomfort, Comet Frost asked her in concern "Do you wish for me to stop?"

"No, go on," she urged him, "What happened?"

"The dean and the principal announced to the student body that several of our fellow students were still inside the burning building," Comet Frost recounted, "They were hoping to keep us calm, but that bit of news had the exact opposite effect. It sent almost everypony into a panic. Everypony except me. The nearest fire station was at least ten minutes away, but I wasn't willing to wait that long. So I… I went back inside on my own."

The aqua stallion expected Cadence to be surprised or startled by this explanation. Instead, she seemed strangely awestruck by it. She grinned and declared "That was admirable of you, Comet."

"Really?" he said in surprise.

"Of course," she affirmed, "I don't have any siblings of my own, but if I was in your position, I would have done the same thing."

"Any caring person would," Comet Frost asserted, "As I was saying, it only took me five minutes to find my brother and sister. They and about a dozen other foals were trapped inside a room that was directly beneath the fire. Part of the ceiling had collapsed in front of the door, and the windows were bolted shut. There was no way out. It was up to me to get them out of there."

"So what did you do?" she questioned in fascination.

"After another minute or two of searching, I managed to find a stairwell that went up through the ceiling," Comet Frost expounded, "I used it to access the roof. From there, I made my way to the very heart of the fire. Then I conjured up the most potent blizzard charm I knew and cast it on the blazing building. Within seconds, the entire inferno was reduced to a massive pile of slush."

Cadence whistled in amazement and perceived "That's incredible, Comet. But what about your brother and sister and the other foals? Were they alright?"

"Yeah, and I was just in time," Comet Frost answered her, "If I had waited another twenty seconds, the roof would have caved in on them. As soon as the flames were out, I went back down to the ground floor and made my way to the room where the foals were trapped in. I managed to force the door open and liberate them. To my relief, nopony died that day. My siblings and the other fillies and colts appeared to be totally unharmed."

The wording of that last statement caught Cadence's attention. She raised an eyebrow and inquired "What do you mean 'appeared to be?'"

"I'll get into that in a bit," Comet Frost assured her, "Before I do, you should know that that day was the day when my reputation at school was permanently changed. Initially, the dean still wanted to discipline me for violating the proper safety protocol and endangering my own life, but his idea was quickly shot down by the principal and the rest of the faculty. Not to mention the parents of the other foals I saved. They couldn't care less about how many rules I broke. They were just grateful that I rescued all those children. I was recognized as a type of hero to the school, and nopony ever gave me trouble there ever again."

"That's wonderful," Cadence declared merrily, smilling again, "You must have been proud, Comet. Putting out a fire and rescuing dozens of young foals singlehoofedly is quite an accomplishment for a grown stallion. For a twelve-year-old colt to do the same thing is nothing short of a wonder."

"I'm inclined to agree, Cadence," Comet Frost stated, "The affection and appreciation I received for my actions seemed limitless. I no longer had any enemies or rivals; everypony wanted to be my friend or acquaintance. For the first time ever, I felt just as comfortable at school as I did when I was at my house. That feeling stayed with me for quite a while. But it wasn't long before it started to fade."

"Did your classmates start bullying you again?" Cadence presumed anxiously.

"No," Comet Frost straightforwardly responded, "I never had any more troubles at school. My last social problem took place days before the fire. Unfortunately, a couple weeks after it, I had my first domestic problems."

Cadence seemed a little disconcerted by this. All the same, she was just as curious as ever to hear more. She leaned closer to the aqua stallion and bade him "Go on."

"You may recall earlier, I mentioned that the foals I rescued **appeared **to be alright," Comet Frost explained, "Now would be the appropriate time for me to specify what I meant. You see, the damage inflicted to the school itself was minimal. Certain parts of the roof needed to be rebuilt and resurfaced, and they had to close down a section of the building temporarily. There was nothing that couldn't be repaired, though. One might say the same thing about the foals I saved. Because of their prolonged exposure to smoke, almost all of them had come down with a violent cough. Most of them were able to get better with the help of medicine, visits to the doctor, and bed rest. So at first glance, there appeared to be no long-term effects. But first glances can be very wrong. My brother and sister were not so lucky. While the other foals improved overtime, my siblings just got worse."

"I assume they contracted something more than a cough?" Cadence hypothesized.

"Correct," Comet Frost affirmed, "When my siblings didn't get better, my parents took them to see a pulmonary specialist. The specialist discovered that both of them had developed a respiratory ailment known as emphysema."

"Emphysema?" Cadence repeated in surprise.

"It's a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease," Comet Frost exemplified, "It damages the air sacs in the lungs, causing the victim to become progressively more short of breath."

"I know what it is, Comet," she disclosed, "But I'm very surprised that your brother and sister came down with it. Emphysema is fairly common in teenagers and adults, but it's rare for a foal to contract it."

"True, but that didn't stop both my siblings from acquiring it," Comet Frost recalled, "To make matters worse, my brother and sister's symptoms were quite advanced by the time they were diagnosed. By this point, there wasn't any medicine or healing magic that could fix them up. The specialist told us that the only option available was lung surgery."

Once more, Cadence seemed rather surprised. She said in astonishment "They were doing that badly?"

"Yes," Comet Frost affirmed, "And it didn't help that lung surgery is hardly inexpensive. My parents had more than enough money to pay for one operation. But they couldn't afford two. However, they were not about to let either of my siblings die. So they called in favors, took out a loan from the bank, and pulled all the strings they could to accumulate the necessary funds. I even got a part-time job to help them out."

"That's commendable of you," Cadence commented, "Out of curiosity, what did you do?"

"I worked at an air-conditioning company," Comet Frost enlightened her, "I used my aptitude with weather spells to decrease the lowest setting of the machines by an additional ten degrees. It greatly increased sales, and it maximized customer feedback."

"But was it enough to get the money your parents needed?" Cadence asked hopefully.

"No, it wasn't," he grimly informed her, "So my father resorted to more… extreme means to pay my siblings' hospital bills."

"Extreme in what capacity?" Cadence inquired.

"I don't know what he did exactly, but there were a lot of signs that suggested it was dirty work," Comet Frost recounted, "For starters, he began coming home later and later. His office generally closed at eight o'clock, but he seldom came home earlier than ten o'clock. I was typically asleep by the time he returned. On the rare occasion when I saw him at night, I noticed he was behaving very strangely. He was always perspiring, exhausted, and shaken. One night, he even came home with blood on his hooves."

"Blood?" Cadence whispered in shock.

"That's correct," Comet Frost asserted, "That's not even the most unsettling part. The most unsettling part is that the blood wasn't his own."

"Then whose was it?" said Cadence.

"According to him, it was the blood of 'some damn imbecile who pissed him off,'" Comet Frost replied, "Pardon my language, but those were his exact words. Soon after that, we had the money needed to pay for an operation for both my brother and my sister. The surgery was carried out without any complications. Once it was over, both of my siblings were breathing normally again. Unfortunately, even after that, my father didn't stop working. He said that he planned to hold on to his 'second job.'"

"Did he give a reason why?" Cadence queried.

"No, but he was adamant about keeping it," Comet Frost recalled, "He tried to convince me and my mother that everything was alright, and he asked us not to worry about him. My mother agreed to look the other way, primarily because my father was still bringing home more money at the end of the day. But the extra money wasn't enough to sway my mind. I was determined to find out what exactly my father was getting himself into. Of course, that was no easy task. He was very good at keeping secrets and covering his tracks."

Comet Frost paused for a moment here, and then he cheekily declared "Thus began my very short-lived career as a private investigator."

Cadence scoffed at that and remarked "Really? You tried your hoof at detective work?"

"Yes, but I was an amateur, at best," Comet Frost apprised her, "I stuck my muzzle in a lot of places. Most of them got me nowhere. Still, I was able to get a bit of useful information twice. The first time, I swung by my father's office and asked some of his coworkers if they had seen him exhibit any suspicious behavior recently. Most of them were unable or unwilling to tell me anything, but his supervisor mentioned that a couple weeks prior, a group of stallions in business suits had visited him. They were only there for five minutes, and only one of them spoke to my father. However, what he did was rather noteworthy. He gave my father two briefcases and told him something. The supervisor did not remember what exactly the business stallion had told my father, but it was something along the lines of 'The first case contains your payment for your last assignment. The second case contains a list of your next assignment. As before, it is a list of problems that I need to be rid of. Once they have been dealt with, you will receive your next payment.'"

"That's some very vivid paraphrasing," Cadence perceived, "But what type of 'problems' did this stallion expect your father to handle?"

"I found out when I got home that night," Comet Frost expounded, "My mother was busy tending to my siblings, and my father was elsewhere. So I snuck into his study and searched for his briefcases. I found both of them hidden in the back of a cabinet. The first one was full of money. I don't know how much money, but it had to be more than both my parents' annual salaries put together. The other briefcase just had a bunch of photographs of certain mares and stallions who lived in Fillydelphia. Some of the photographs had a huge red X drawn over them. One of them was a teacher of mine."

"So that business stallion's problems were all other ponies?" Cadence presumed in perplexity.

"Yeah," Comet Frost affirmed, "And it did not take me long to learn how my father 'dealt with them' for him. Around this time, a lot of unsettling articles started appearing in the newspapers. These articles were about ponies in Fillydelphia who had been beaten, killed, or gone missing. All of these articles included a picture of the victim. Many of them were strangely familiar to me. Before long, I recognized them as some of the ponies in the photographs from my father's briefcase."

At that, the color seemed to drain from Cadence's face. After a tense interval of silence, she muttered uneasily "You're not saying that your father had something to do with all those mishaps, are you?"

"As much as I didn't want to believe it, I couldn't ignore the possibility that he was somehow responsible," Comet Frost disclosed, "When I thought about it, it all made sense. The time away from home, the sudden change in his personality, the suitcase, the blood… everything pointed to the suggestion that he was bringing harm to other people. But I still had enough respect for my father that I did not to write him off like that straightaway. So for a while, I tried pretending that I never looked in that briefcase of his. I chose to remain ignorant for a couple months. Then…"

He paused once more, and he gazed off to the side, as if he was contemplating how to continue. After a short interval of quietness, Cadence presumed "Did something happen?"

"Yes, something atrocious," Comet Frost disclosed, "A moment ago, I mentioned that one of my teachers was amongst the people in that briefcase. This particularly teacher was my magic professor. I had known him since my first day of middle school, and he was both a mentor and a friend to me. He believed I had potential to become a master of weather spells, and he offered to help me hone my skills. Since I quit my part-time job, I was able to see him after school for private tutoring. I saw him almost every day for an entire year. However, one day, he said he would be unable to see me after classes ended. He told me that he had scheduled a meeting with my father. Apparently, my father wanted to speak with him to see if I could actually pursue a career in weather spells. So I agreed to skip our lessons for one day. That was probably the biggest mistake I ever made."

"What do you mean?" Cadence queried nervously.

"My magic professor was found dead the following day," Comet Frost grimly revealed, "It was the first thing I read in the newspaper. The coroners' report indicated that he died at approximately 3:45 the previous afternoon. That was the exact same time his meeting with my father took place."

Cadence gasped at this and she mumbled "Oh my…"

"My reaction exactly," said Comet Frost bitterly, "My parents hadn't left for work yet. My father was in his study at this time. After I learned about what happened to my magic professor, I stormed upstairs and burst into the room without knocking. There I found my father at his desk. He had his briefcase open on the surface, and he was in the midst of drawing a red X over the picture of my magic professor. It was at that very moment that I finally realized that my father was a murderer."

Cadence did not know what to say to that. Comet Frost could tell she was disturbed, but she was even more enthralled than ever. He sighed and continued with "What happened next is something I wish I could forget, but the memory of it is imbedded into my mind the way my cutie mark is imbedded into my flank. As you can imagine, I confronted my father once I discovered his dark secret. I yelled at him furiously and cursed him for bringing harm to my magic professor and the countless other innocent people in that briefcase. He tried to justify his actions by claiming that none of his victims were innocent and that they had all done something to warrant their fates. In turn, I demanded to know what my magic professor had done. He told me that it was none of my business, and that I had no right to judge him for putting those people in the ground. I countered by saying that I had every right, that I was ashamed to call him my father, and that he had committed unspeakable, unforgivable atrocities. What he said in response… it chilled my blood."

"What did he say?" Cadence asked him restlessly

"He claimed that it was my fault that he took up this second job in the first place," Comet Frost enlightened her, "Initially, I was confused and I had no idea what he meant, but he was quick to clarify that point. He told me that the reason he first got this second job was that we needed the money for my siblings' operations. He argued that if they had died in that fire, they never would have needed that money to begin with. However, since I was the one who saved them, he debated that I was responsible for their debt with the hospital. In other words… he blamed me for the fates of all those people in his briefcase."

Cadence gasped in shock at that. She uttered softly "He… actually said that?"

Comet Frost solemnly nodded his head and remarked "When he said that, something awoke inside me. I happened to look in the mirror on the wall, and I saw that my left eye had become red like my right eye. That was the first sign that I was losing control. My blood became as cold as ice, and I could feel the anger boiling in his veins. It was as though a demon was consuming me. I felt nothing but pure, unadulterated rage. All I wanted was to put my father in pain, and that is precisely what I did. I seized my father by the throat and started attacking him. He barely had time to react. I struck him over and over again. When I was done beating him, his face and chest were covered in blood. But I wasn't finished with him yet. Before he had a chance to recover, I conjured up an iceberg spell and cast it on my father. As a result, he was trapped in a block of solid ice."

Cadence had already been shocked no fewer than half a dozen times, but this part of Comet Frost's explanation left her absolutely speechless.

"If you're wondering, I didn't kill him," Comet Frost assured her, "He was simply in suspended animation. However, my mother and my siblings came into the room a couple minutes later, and they did not react well at all. I tried to explain that my father was a contract killer and that he had dozens of deaths on his conscience, but they wouldn't even do me the courtesy of listening. My brother and sister looked at me as though they were afraid of me, and my mother acted as though she was going to disown me. She pretty much did; she slapped me in the face and demanded that I leave the house. I agreed without offering any resistance. Within an hour, I was packed up and I moved out of there. Then I left Fillydelphia. I've never set hoof in that city since then."

Cadence nodded in acknowledgment of all this information. Then she asked "So, how'd you come to join the Royal Guard?"

"After I left home, I went to Canterlot to look for a job where my magic could be useful," Comet Frost answered, "The capital city wasn't big on manufacturing air-conditioning, so I decided to join the Royal Guard. They seemed to be the next best choice, as well as the most logical one. You could call it my way of atoning for my father's sins."

"That's a noble way of looking at it," Cadence commented, "Do you think it was the right call to enlist in the Royal Guard?"

"Oh, absolutely," Comet Frost told her, "I've never regretted my decision. Not for a second. It's given me a feeling of importance and usefulness. Plus, my fellow officers have been like another family to me."

"That's good to hear," stated Cadence, "But have you heard anything from your real family? Do you know what became of your parents and siblings?"

"I assumed they were able to thaw out my father," Comet Frost speculated, "However, I've lost all hope of ever seeing or talking to them again. I don't really care if I do, either. They turned their backs on me, so I've turned my back on them in return. I just hope that my father will ultimately be brought to justice for what he's done."

Princess Cadence lightly smiled and placed her hoof on Comet Frost's shoulder. Then she told him assertively "Well, look on the bright side. After going through so much and struggling for so long, you've made it this far. You're a commander in the Equestrian Royal Guard. Even if he doesn't pay for his crimes, your father can't touch you now. Nopony can touch you."

"Except you," Comet Frost slyly pointed out, gesturing to her hoof on his shoulder.

Cadence chuckled again and stated "Right, except me. So remember, Comet; if you ever need somepony to talk to, or somepony to speak your mind to, or somepony to discuss your troubles with, I'm willing to listen."

"Thank you, Cadence," Comet Frost uttered gratefully, "I really appreciate that. I really do."

"It's my pleasure," was all the pink Alicorn said in response.


End file.
